Added September 14,
2005:“Record-High 1.4M Births to Single
Women in 2003; Teen Birth Rate Drops for 12th Consecutive Year,
Report Says, USA.”
Washington
TimesIn the following explanation of this phenomenon, I do not
mention the impact of DHEA.DHEA is
involved in pregnancy.DHEA peaks around
age 20.This means that the teens have
not reached peak levels for pregnancy.Testosterone interferes with the availability of DHEA.Therefore, teens will have an unfavorable
ratio of DHEA to testosterone for pregnancy.Since testosterone continues to rise in this country, this means that
the teens will continue to exhibit reduced pregnancy and this reduction will
increase with time.As the teens age and
their DHEA levels increase, they will begin to increase in pregnancy.All of the foregoing, added to increased
sexuality due to increased testosterone levels, also explains why the older
group of women exhibit increased births.

A Possible Explanation of the
Decline in Birth Rate Among “Adolescent and Young Teen
Girls in the United States”
as Well as Other Groups

Copyright 2004, James Michael
Howard, Fayetteville, Arkansas, U.S.A.

The birth rate of “adolescent
and young teen girls in the United
States” has declined to the lowest levels
since 1946.The explanations include
abstinence programs and birth control.Well, this combination may be the reason and this would be positive because
it can be continued.However, there may
be another reason for this decline in birth rate.

It is my hypothesis that the
“secular trend,” the increase in size and earlier puberty occurring in our
children results from increases in testosterone.That is, the percentage of people of higher
testosterone is increasing more rapidly than those of lower testosterone.(Testosterone, not estrogen, is the source of
sexual activity in girls and women.)Over time the percentage of individuals of higher testosterone increases
within the population.This is driven by
the percentage increase in women of higher testosterone and the consequences of
this are due to exposure of fetuses to higher maternal testosterone.The neonates become children who grow bigger
and enter puberty earlier, among other phenomena that are also increasing
within our population.

If individuals of higher
testosterone are increasing in percentage and this is the cause of reduced
birth rates, then increased testosterone should be connected with reduced
fertility and conception in women and girls.This is supported.

In this citation, note the
effects of testosterone on fertility “in the absence of clinical signs of
hyperandrogenism.In other words,
increased testosterone may reduce fertility in women and girls without outward
signs of excessive testosterone.“The mean
level of free T [testosterone] was significantlyhigher (P less than
0.05) in anovulatory women when compared with ovulatoryones. …The
results show that in infertile womendetermination of androgen
levels, and especially free T [testosterone], is indicated inthe
absence of clinical signs of hyperandrogenism.” (Human Reproduction 1988; 3:
437-439).

This next citation supports,
again, that high testosterone reduces conception.“In addition, levels of free testosterone
during the follicular phase were significantly lower in women who conceived
compared to non-conceptional IVF cycles, whereas levels of total testosterone
were similar.” (Human Reproduction 1992; 7: 1365-70).

This effect does not affect
women alone.Too much testosterone
reduces spermatogenesis, sperm count, in men.Testosterone undecanoate increases free testosterone in men.“Monthly injections of testosterone
undecanoate (TU) act as amale contraceptive by reversibly
suppressing spermatogenesisto azoospermia or severe oligoazoospermia
in 95% of Chinesemen.” (Journal of Andrology 2004; 25: 720-7)I suggest the secular trend, the increase in
testosterone, is also affecting men.This effect may be linear, that is, sperm count may begin to be reduced
at a high level of testosterone before actually causing spermatogenesis to
cease.I think this is occurring with
the secular trend.

Again, I suggest the secular
trend, which is real and robust in our children (“Secular Trends in Height
Among Children During 2 Decades,” (Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent
Medicine 2000; 154: 155-161), represents an increase in individuals of higher
testosterone.As this increase occurs,
we increasingly see the effects of excessive testosterone.I suggest one of these effects is a reduction
in birth rates of individuals of high testosterone because high testosterone
reduces fertility / conception in females and reduces sperm count in
males.This may be the cause the decline
in teenage birth rates.

Now, as I stated above, the
institution which reported these findings regarding teenage birth rates
suggested that abstinence programs and contraception may be producing this
effect.If I am correct, then we should
be seeing other consequences of increasing testosterone within our population
that should not be ameliorated by abstinence programs or contraception.Autism has been connected with maternal
testosterone levels and autism is also increasing within our population.Testosterone levels have been directly
connected with breast cancer.“…testosterone might be more strongly associated with [breast cancer]
risk than estradiol.” ( Journal of the National Cancer Institute (U.S.A.)
2002; 94: 606-616).Breast cancer is
rapidly increasing and has been determined to not be due to increased
surveillance.I also suggest a strong
case may be made for the involvement of excessive testosterone with obesity,
premature and underweight births, and learning problems, all of which are
increasing.